Having made a ripper start to my weight loss in the second half of 2016, then letting loose over Christmas and my birthday, I was finding it hard to get back into the swing of things. But I was finding it hard to figure out what to do about it. I have to admit, last year I had looked into surgery but to be honest the idea of it just doesn’t sit well with me. I’ve always felt that I should be able to undertake weight loss myself i.e. without shakes, surgery, drugs etc. Let me be clear, I don’t judge other people for using these options, they’re just not for me. But I have previously used programs that provided me with diet and exercise advice/programs.

Based on what I think has worked for me previously (restricting my food intake), I’ve signed up with Jenny Craig. I have to admit, I’ve always felt like there was a stigma attached to JC and WW. A thought that I’ve had for years that is unfounded. Why should I judge something that is obviously successful and has worked for many years? Why should I judge (and assume others judge) something that really just puts into practice what we should be doing every day?

So I screwed up the courage and made an online enquiry which resulted in an appointment. Now I’ve driven past the offices a number of times and never spotted anyone going in or out. But now it was me and who might see me going in? Would they judge me? Think to themselves “damn right she should be going in there” or “crikey, that’s obviously not working for her – look at the size of her”. Gosh I hate how my head gets in the way sometimes!

But I did it anyway. I walked straight in that door and didn’t feel daggers flying or anything!

I walked in thinking that I would sign up and slot into their delivery schedule and would therefore probably start the following week. But no – they have all the meals there and you can walk out with them and start straight away. Part of the sign-up is to buy a program in essence. They advertise dollars for kilos but with about 30 kilos to lose and far too many experiences of gaining weight as soon as I lose it, I was thinking long term. So get this, I signed up for FIVE YEARS. Food and regular appointments til I get to my goal weight then maintenance from there. If (when) I get to the five year mark, if I’m within 1-2kgs of my goal weight, they’ll refund my membership.

Now of course, this isn’t about the money. This is about maintenance. This is about the fact that I’ve never been able to keep weight off as soon as I stop losing. The aim of the JC program is to allow me to lose but learn to eat properly, particularly portion control. And to be accountable over a longer period of time.

Whilst I had to pick a goal weight, my goal is actually clothes. I have sooooo many clothes I can’t wear. Recently I put them all in groups – 22/24, 18/20 and 14/16. I have some really lovely size 14 and 16 clothes that I bought in New York City that I’ve hardly worn. I’m looking forward to pulling those ones out.